Day 1
Sea Kayaking Award 17th May - Pass Achieved - Alan, Andy, John, Matt, Tony, Martin & Amanda
It had been in the diary since January but, as they say, time flies and there we were, May 17th and it’s time for our kayak skills course. Peter had organised training with Dorset Kayaking and as the group readied their kayaks, we wondered what the day would bring. One pleasant surprise was the weather, a sunny day was ahead of us despite the pessimistic forecast earlier in the week. The weather was a hot topic of discussion as Peter had made clear we would be getting wet!
Whilst discussions centred around what would be the best kit to wear our trainer Paul walked through the gate and within minutes had introduced himself and we felt like he was part of the club. It was clear that Paul was very knowledgeable but, as important, was his relaxed style in conveying information and seeking to understand what the group wanted from the day.
Training started on dry land with pre-paddle kit checks and discussion where emergency equipment was stored and where we would paddle. Time to head to the river and a paddle towards Creeksea, our chosen spot for our training. On the way Paul demonstrated multiple paddle strokes keen to understand how much we knew about each, allowing us to practice and receive his advice on how to make our strokes as effective as possible.
Having refined our paddle skills, we headed back to the club for lunch. The sun was shining and we enjoyed a good chat whilst we refuelled. A few thoughts on clothing again as we all knew we would be getting wet before the day was out!
Once we were back on the water, we practiced contact towing whilst discussing real life situations where this would be useful. One routine we practiced was a scenario where one kayak had a hole and needed repair. Simple! Three paddlers raft up with the fourth with the hole pulling alongside, kayaker slides onto the back of the raft, the kayak on the front of the raft for repair.
With an hour of training left it was time to get wet. Paul gave us some challenges which inevitably led to us taking a dip in the river, after an initial gasp, it wasn’t so bad. Once in we had a good opportunity to practice rescues and getting back into our kayaks.
As we went ashore, we all agreed what a great day we had had, how useful the training was and committed to practice the skills that we had worked on during the day.
Thanks to Peter for organising and Paul from Dorset Kayaking www.seakayakdorset.co.uk for being such a great trainer. Alan
Day 2
Sea Kayaking Safety and Rescue Certificate Course 18th May - Pass Achieved - Alan, John, Matt, Martin, Jerry, Roger & Mark
I was helping out with the junior sailing at the club on Friday evening when one of the parents said to me “Was that you in amongst the people in kayaks off the pontoon on Saturday?” Well, it was! The parent went on to say that it looked really good fun, and there was quite a gathering of people stopped on the quay to watch our activities. He also said that our coach looked really good too. So, it wasn’t just us in the kayaks that enjoyed the course!!!
Although my dad bought my brother and I a kayak each when we were about eleven and twelve, it wasn’t until I went to college in west Wales, aged 18, that I really got into kayaking. There we used the pool every Wednesday evening, spent weekends on white water trips or slaloms, and trained up to be inland instructors.
Aged 21, I moved back to Essex, missed the white-water rivers and so sold my kayak! Fast forward four and a half decades, and there I was on the Crouch with our coach Paul from Dorset Kayaking. I was actually feeling very apprehensive about the afternoon sessions when we would be getting wet! The thought of capsizing and getting back in the kayak filled me with concern. When I was in my late teens and early twenties, I was never the most agile of people, and remember struggling to clamber over paddles of rafted up kayaks to get back in after a capsize. I only ever did this in the pool, and always somehow managed to roll back up when out on rivers. So now, approaching my mid-sixties I was thinking ‘how the hell am I going to get back in the kayak?’ Well, Paul put us all at ease, and demonstrated techniques that didn’t exist when I learnt. It was all about keeping your centre of gravity low, and climbing on face down too. When I learnt, you used to have to have your own empty kayak rafted up between two other kayaks, with their paddlers holding everything steady. Now, with just one kayaker holding my kayak, I could hook myself in so much more easily than I had expected. What a joy! Confidence started to grow, as we tried the next activity, where we capsized and pretended to have injured an arm. Here the technique involved half filling the unmanned kayak, then another paddler holding it on its side, and then the one in the water ‘floating’ in before pulling us up. Unbelievable, didn’t think that this would be so easy!
Next up, a self-rescue; so capsize, and get yourself back in your kayak unassisted. Paul demonstrated, and made it look soooo easy! I thought, I’m never going to be able to do that, couldn’t even do it in a pool when I was 20! I hung back and let others do it first. It did look a struggle. Paul said, rather than climbing up on your kayak, try to swim over it and pull it under you. Alan had a go (we were working as a pair), but struggled to get up on the kayak. Watching him, I thought, if you go closer to the stern (back end) of the kayak, it is less buoyant (narrower), so it might be easier to get on. Suggested this to Alan, he tried it, and it worked. He was soon back in his kayak. My turn….. Shall I try a roll first? Yes, go for it, the ultimate self-rescue!! Not tried it in my sea kayak, and probably only rolled twice in the last 4 decades! Well, almost made up on the first attempt, but failed, so went back under, repositioned, and tried again, but didn’t get up so far, so back under and bail out. Paul had showed us how to lift and flip the kayak upright spilling any water in it at the same time. Tried this, and it worked first go. So far so good! Now to get back in. Swim over the back end. Yes, that worked first go. Slide on my chest up the back deck keeping my legs in the water for balance. Got my head to the cockpit and needed to catch my breath, so hung my head inside to keep the centre of gravity low. Alan watching me, thought that the head hanging was because of exhaustion! Head up, carry on sliding forward until my waist was on the foredeck. Now pivot upright and bum lands in the seat. Unbelievable, it works, I was overjoyed!
Final activity of the day was to rescue someone unconscious upside down in the water. Our brave coach Paul was the volunteer. 7 times he capsized, hung upside down and waited for each of us to paddle up to him and pull him up. The sense of responsibility we all felt to get him up quickly….! He did assure us that if we took too long, he would just roll up, but…!
At the end of the day, we all passed, and felt that we had learnt so much. Paul was amazing and gave us plenty of skills to practise in our next pool sessions at Woodham!
Thank you, Peter, for organising and we now have 7 more club members equipped to come and rescue you if ever needed!!! Roger
Photos supplied by: John, Paul & Dee
